Monday, October 23, 2016
Today's Specials:
HACK #72: Power of the Pen
With the electronic world seeping further and further into our cultural DNA, real postal mail feels exotic and special somehow. Employees work hard, and many times they exceed your expectations.
TECH BEAT: 5 Uses of Wearable Technology in Restaurants [NextRestaurants]
Wearable restaurant technology might be in its infancy, but it promises to improve the restaurant guest experience & staff productivity. Here are five ways it can revolutionize how you do business.
DID YOU KNOWs…
I PUT THAT S**T ON EVERYTHING
Since most of our subscribers serve chicken wings in some form, you should know a bit about the history of the most successful of them all…Frank’s RedHot, the father of modern buffalo wings! Now we won’t bore you too many facts except this we love the Ethel, the Grandma that says, I put that s**t on everything!” Check her out here!
EYE OF THE BEHOLDER
Would you throw this woman out of your restaurant? Dress codes are a tricky thing and almost never successfully and evenly applied. That’s why I hate them. In this instance, modeland surfer Anastasia Ashley, was asked to leave the Gulfstream, a California restaurant due to her attire. No winners ever and worse yet, the restaurant denies asking her to leave. You be the judge?
See this Instagram photo by @anastasiaashley * 12.4k likes
WE DON’T HAVE A MONOPOLY. WE HAVE MARKET SHARE – STEVE BALLMER
Why it matters to you: AT&T acquiring Time Warner is an epic consolidation of content and delivery and will ultimately impact your media costs.
To say that a merger between AT&T and Time Warner would be massive is the understatement of the century (pardon my hyperbole). These two giants coming together consolidates billions of dollars of revenue and who knows what value in content. The purchase is for a cool $85.4 billion and still needs SEC approval. However, unless there is a real outcry it will likely be completed. This by AT&T, after a couple of years ago buying satellite leader and owner of NFL out of market rights, DIRECTV.
The ramifications for many of you will be significant, but they will happen subtly. Just as it has taken a couple of years for bundling on AT&T’s networks across mobile, internet and satellite, this change won’t happen overnight. Some possible outcomes that are actually improvements for DIRECTV will be greater chance that SNLA, network of the Dodgers, will finally come on to DTV. Also, the PAC12 network, might be willing to renegotiate with DIRECTV not that they can leverage all 3 super provider platforms: AT&T, TW and DTV. It will likely impact pricing, but not in ways you may anticipate. Yes, base content may get more expensive, but the bundling opportunities for DIRECTV customers could be pivotal to managing costs in the future. We’ll keep you posted as this progresses and update with any changes as they occur.
DOING THE RIGHT THING [Song]
Why it matters to you: This kind of viral story you will like
It’s ok to admit that you can’t be 100% sure everyone that leaves your place is sober and fit to drive. We all try hard, train our teams, focus on managing, but we’re not perfect. Here’s a story of how one manager has created a positive feeling around not driving if you even sense a little bit you’ve had too much to drink. Enter Jay McClean, Managing partner of Original Joe’s in Alberta Canada. After a guest left their car in the Original Joe’s lot for two days, they returned to find this note waiting for them on their car.
Nope, it wasn’t a nastygram…it was a thank you note with an order of wings to invite them back. Basically, Joe has been rewarding his guests that are adult enough to leave their vehicles and take alternative transportation for everyone’s safety. The guest was certainly relieved he hadn’t created any trouble and elated that the manager cared about their safety. Now I have to warn you this being Canada, I could never imagine anyone exploiting this, but as an American, I am a little cynical…just sayin’.
WHO IS THE REAL FRAUD?
Why it matters to you: Many of us employ undocumented workers, are any of them voting?
The restaurant industry has long been a landing spot for arriving immigrants in this country. Many of you work with people that are trying to make America their home and work hard for you in your restaurants. We will assume they are here legally, but either way, you can count on your immigrant employees to want to work, pick up shifts and be grateful for their jobs. Here’s the rub…have you ever heard of anyone that you employed or employed by others that was a non-citizen voting in a US election? I never have, in 30 odd years in the industry. Given the enormous number of Latinos that work in our restaurants, you just couldn’t keep that secret.
Many of us count on these immigrants to work our more challenging positions and do so professionally. It hurts to hear everyday folks malign a group of people that mean so much to our industry. That’s just my opinion and we listen to all opinions here at The Rail. So, if you disagree with me or want to weigh-in yourself, hit me in the comments below. We will reply to anyone with something to say.